Decent growth, benign inflation, a dovish Fed and a weaker dollar all favor equities but international and emerging stocks look set to build on the outperformance of the last year
Decent growth, benign inflation, a dovish Fed and a weaker dollar all favor equities but international and emerging stocks look set to build on the outperformance of the last year
Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and her government have become the focus of a coordinated, long-term online smear campaign orchestrated by thousands of social media accounts, according to new research. A study by Tokyo-based Japan Nexus Intelligence, which analyses digital public discourse, found that some 3,000 accounts had been actively posting malicious content about Takaichi since late J...
Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and her government have become the focus of a coordinated, long-term online smear campaign orchestrated by thousands of social media accounts, according to new research. A study by Tokyo-based Japan Nexus Intelligence, which analyses digital public discourse, found that some 3,000 accounts had been actively posting malicious content about Takaichi since late January. The activity surged roughly a week before campaigning for the House of Representatives...
Qatar’s oldest private bank plans to sell its first Additional Tier 1 bond since 2021 as it joins a boom in issuers offering the debt. The Commercial Bank P.S.Q.C. has mandated banks for a planned dollar-denominated perpetual sale of the junior subordinated notes, according to a person familiar with the matter. The deal will follow investor calls starting on Monday, February 23, and the offering w...
Qatar’s oldest private bank plans to sell its first Additional Tier 1 bond since 2021 as it joins a boom in issuers offering the debt. The Commercial Bank P.S.Q.C. has mandated banks for a planned dollar-denominated perpetual sale of the junior subordinated notes, according to a person familiar with the matter. The deal will follow investor calls starting on Monday, February 23, and the offering will be subject to market conditions, the person added. Recent subordinated bond sales have reflected a strong appetite for high-yielding AT1 debt, which is sold by borrowers less exposed to broader market concerns such as AI disruption and geopolitics. Subordinated bond issuance from the Middle East and Turkey has already reached $7.88 billion this year, following a record near-$29 billion of issuance last year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Read more: Hot AT1s Hit New Frontier With Tightest-Ever Euro Spread (1) The Qatari lender has an existing perpetual bond that can be called next month, with a reset margin of 387.4 basis points over the US Treasury benchmark. Earlier in February UAE-based Mashreqbank sold a US dollar-denominated perpetual non-call 5.5-year AT1 with a reset margin of 251.6 basis points. BofA Securities, DBS Bank Ltd., HSBC Holdings Plc, Mashreq, Banco Santander SA and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp have been hired as joint lead managers and joint bookrunners for CBQ’s sale. The deal is planned in Regulation S format only. Issuer Profile Debt distribution: CBQK QD Equity DDIS Capital structure: CBQK QD Equity CAST Related securities: CBQK QD Equity RELS Ratings history: CBQK QD Equity CRPR This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation
Guido Mieth/DigitalVision via Getty Images Whenever I write a company a ‘hold,’ I am making the claim that the stock should perform more or less along the lines of the market moving forward. Sometimes, I am wrong. But other times, I am as close to right as you could hope. Speaking of hope, a great example of me being pretty darn close to accurate in my assessment involves Hope Bancorp ( HOPE ) , a...
Guido Mieth/DigitalVision via Getty Images Whenever I write a company a ‘hold,’ I am making the claim that the stock should perform more or less along the lines of the market moving forward. Sometimes, I am wrong. But other times, I am as close to right as you could hope. Speaking of hope, a great example of me being pretty darn close to accurate in my assessment involves Hope Bancorp ( HOPE ) , a bank with a market capitalization today of $1.56 billion. In my first and only article about the institution, published back in October of 2023, I acknowledged that shares looked cheap. I was also interested in the company's business model, with an emphasis on the Korean population. But at the end of the day, I believed that, because of how the stock was valued, it justified no better than a ‘hold’ rating. From that time through today, the stock has risen 57%. That's within striking distance of the 59.3% rise that the S&P 500 has achieved. That's about as close to matching the market as you could hope for. Looking at the picture today, I see a business that has gone through a lot of changes. The good news is that, even though the last couple of years have been tough, particularly from a profitability perspective, we have started to see the picture improve markedly. Unfortunately, even though the stock is cheap relative to book value and tangible book value, asset quality is still lower than I would like it to be. And while I fully expect changes in the interest rate environment to have a positive impact on the company near term, I am not ready to upgrade it just yet. Taking a fresh look at Hope Bancorp Operationally speaking, Hope Bancorp is most certainly an interesting player in the financial sector. Based out of California, the company has positioned itself over the years as an institution focused on servicing Korean Americans. This differentiation is interesting in and of itself. And it gives investors the opportunity to bank on, quite literally, the success of an inte...
ismagilov/iStock via Getty Images Stock futures edged lower Monday morning to kick off February's final trading week, as investors assessed President Trump's new 15% across-the-board tariffs imposed after last week's Supreme Court ruling against his prior emergency levies. Here are some of Monday's biggest stock movers: Biggest stock gainers Vanda Pharmaceuticals ( VNDA ) +33% - Shares surged afte...
ismagilov/iStock via Getty Images Stock futures edged lower Monday morning to kick off February's final trading week, as investors assessed President Trump's new 15% across-the-board tariffs imposed after last week's Supreme Court ruling against his prior emergency levies. Here are some of Monday's biggest stock movers: Biggest stock gainers Vanda Pharmaceuticals ( VNDA ) +33% - Shares surged after the U.S. FDA approved Bysanti (milsaperidone) to treat bipolar I disorder and schizophrenia. The drug is an active metabolite of Fanapt (iloperidone), with studies showing bioequivalence. Bysanti is also being evaluated in a Phase 3 trial as an add-on therapy for major depressive disorder. Biggest stock losers Novo Nordisk ( NVO ) -10% - Shares plunged after its experimental obesity drug CagriSema failed to meet a key endpoint in a head-to-head study versus Eli Lilly’s (LLY) tirzepatide, adding to competitive pressure in the weight-loss market. The setback comes as Novo faces rising competition despite the success of Wegovy and Ozempic, with the stock already down sharply in 2025. VF Corp. ( VFC ) -4% - Shares fell after JPMorgan downgraded the stock to Underweight from Neutral and cut profit forecasts. Analyst Matthew Boss lowered FY2027 EPS to $0.99 and FY2028 EPS to $1.26, both below consensus, and set an $18 price target, implying about 15% downside. More on related stocks: Novo Nordisk Is Under Pressure - And Trading At A Discount Vanda Pharma: High Risk, Heavily Discounted - Stock Ahead Of PDUFA This Week Novo Nordisk: The Possible Upside Vanda surges as FDA approves Bysanti for bipolar disorder, schizophrenia Vanda declines on Q4 results, weak 2026 revenue guidance
hapabapa/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Novo Nordisk ( NVO ) shares fell nearly 11% in premarket trading Monday after the company’s next-generation obesity drug CagriSema delivered less weight loss than Eli Lilly’s ( LLY ) competing treatment in a phase 3 trial, raising new concerns about its sales potential. The REDEFINE 4 trial included 809 randomized people with obesity and one or more comor...
hapabapa/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Novo Nordisk ( NVO ) shares fell nearly 11% in premarket trading Monday after the company’s next-generation obesity drug CagriSema delivered less weight loss than Eli Lilly’s ( LLY ) competing treatment in a phase 3 trial, raising new concerns about its sales potential. The REDEFINE 4 trial included 809 randomized people with obesity and one or more comorbidities and with a mean baseline body weight of 114.2 kg. It investigated CagriSema (a fixed-dose combination of cagrilintide 2.4 mg and semaglutide 2.4 mg) compared to tirzepatide 15 mg, both administered once-weekly and subcutaneously. Patients taking a standard dose of CagriSema lost 20.2% of their body weight after 84 weeks, compared with 23.6% for Lilly’s tirzepatide. “The trial did not achieve its primary endpoint of demonstrating non-inferiority on weight loss for CagriSema compared to tirzepatide after 84 weeks,” Novo said . Lilly ( LLY ) shares rose as much as 4.2% in U.S. premarket trading following the results. CagriSema is considered a key part of Novo’s strategy as it faces intensifying competition and future patent expirations for its blockbuster drugs Wegovy and Ozempic. The once-weekly subcutaneous therapy is being investigated by Novo Nordisk as a treatment for adults with overweight or obesity (REDEFINE program) and as a treatment for adults with type 2 diabetes (REIMAGINE program). The therapy combines semaglutide with a compound that mimics the gut hormone amylin, but results have been mixed, including a prior obesity study that missed Novo’s weight-loss target. Analysts had expected the drug to at least match tirzepatide’s performance. CagriSema for weight management was submitted to the US FDA in December 2025 based on the REDEFINE 1 and REDEFINE 2 pivotal trials, and an FDA decision is anticipated by late 2026. More on Novo Nordisk A/S, Eli Lilly Novo Nordisk Is Under Pressure - And Trading At A Discount Eli Lilly Trumps Novo Nordisk In GLP-1 Race: M...
Carlsberg A/S has appointed three banks and begun preparations for a potential listing of its India unit that could raise as much as $700 million, according to people familiar with the matter. The company has picked Kotak Mahindra Capital Co. and the local units of JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Inc. as advisers on the proposed share sale, the people said, asking not to be identified because t...
Carlsberg A/S has appointed three banks and begun preparations for a potential listing of its India unit that could raise as much as $700 million, according to people familiar with the matter. The company has picked Kotak Mahindra Capital Co. and the local units of JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Inc. as advisers on the proposed share sale, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private. A draft red herring prospectus could be filed as early as May, they said. The offering is expected to consist of a secondary share sale by the parent company and could take place later this year, the people said. Details, including the size, structure and timing of the transaction, are still being finalized and may change. A listing would position the brewer alongside a growing number of multinational companies tapping Indian markets to capitalize on higher local valuations. Hyundai Motor Co., LG Electronics Inc. and Carraro India Ltd. have all listed their Indian operations in the last two years to access the country’s deep domestic investor base. Hyundai Motor trades at 11 times estimated earnings for this year, compared with about 32 times for its Indian unit, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Pernod Ricard SA, the maker of Absolut vodka and Chivas Regal Scotch whisky, is also considering a listing of its Indian business. Companies including Bonfiglioli Transmission Pvt. , Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages and Fossil Group Inc. are among others weighing similar moves. Carlsberg Group is “exploring different options for increasing shareholder value, which may potentially include an IPO of our business in India, but no final decision has been made,” Kenni Leth, head of external communications, said in an emailed response, citing the annual report. JPMorgan declined to comment, while Kotak and Citigroup didn’t respond to requests for comment. Carlsberg India is the country’s second-largest brewer with about a 22% share of the beer market, accor...
Hanizam/iStock via Getty Images The following segment was excerpted from the Harbor Large Cap Value Fund Q4 2025 Commentary. Portfolio Performance During the fourth quarter, the Harbor Large Cap Value Fund (Institutional Class, "Fund") returned 1.26%, underperforming its benchmark, the Russell 1000® Value Index ("Index"), which returned 3.81%, and underperforming the 2.66% return of the S&P 500 In...
Hanizam/iStock via Getty Images The following segment was excerpted from the Harbor Large Cap Value Fund Q4 2025 Commentary. Portfolio Performance During the fourth quarter, the Harbor Large Cap Value Fund (Institutional Class, "Fund") returned 1.26%, underperforming its benchmark, the Russell 1000® Value Index ("Index"), which returned 3.81%, and underperforming the 2.66% return of the S&P 500 Index. The Fund's underperformance relative to the Index can be attributed to security selection, while allocation effects contributed. Security selection in Information Technology, Consumer Discretionary, and Materials detracted the most from relative performance. Conversely, security selection in Financials, Health Care, and Energy contributed. (Relative weights are the result of bottom-up security selection.) Contributors & Detractors The top five contributors to relative performance during the fourth quarter were: Parker Hannifin ( PH ), Capital One Financial ( COF ), Amgen ( AMGN ), Merck ( MRK ), and Danaher ( DHR ). Parker Hannifin continues to benefit from strength in its aerospace business, where demand for original equipment and aftermarket services has driven organic growth and margin expansion. Capital One's strong financial results, including net interest margin expansion, were driven primarily by the addition of Discover's credit card portfolio. Amgen reported continued success in biosimilars and branded drugs. Its weight-loss drug, MariTide, continued progressing through the trial phase. Merck moved up, as investors gained more clarity about which vaccines would be supported by the current administration. Investors were enthusiastic about Danaher's third quarter results, which beat expectations on both revenue and earnings. The bottom five detractors from relative performance were: Lennar ( LEN ), Uber ( UBER ), Sony ( SONY ), Microsoft ( MSFT ), and Teledyne Technologies ( TDY ). Lennar's gross margins were compressed as homebuilders have provided more incenti...
The weight loss drug market has been one key focus for investors in recent years. This is because demand has been incredibly high, driving blockbuster revenue for companies making such products -- here, I'm talking about pharma giants Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk . But these companies aren't the only ones that could win in the market in the years to come. One biotech company in particular is approac...
The weight loss drug market has been one key focus for investors in recent years. This is because demand has been incredibly high, driving blockbuster revenue for companies making such products -- here, I'm talking about pharma giants Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk . But these companies aren't the only ones that could win in the market in the years to come. One biotech company in particular is approaching the finish line, with its candidate involved in a phase 3 trial. This player, Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ: VKTX) , is studying VK2735 in injectable format in that trial and aims to launch a phase 3 trial of an oral format of the candidate later this year. Let's check out three reasons Viking stock could increase by 10 if its obesity pipeline succeeds. Continue reading
OpenAI CEO ( OPENAI ) Sam Altman has ridiculed the idea of setting up data centers in space for now, even as SpaceX ( SPACE ) CEO Elon Musk prioritizes this endeavor. "I honestly think the idea with the current landscape of putting data centers in space is ridiculous," Altman said in a recent interview with Indian Express . "It will make sense someday." He pointed to launch costs and how difficult...
OpenAI CEO ( OPENAI ) Sam Altman has ridiculed the idea of setting up data centers in space for now, even as SpaceX ( SPACE ) CEO Elon Musk prioritizes this endeavor. "I honestly think the idea with the current landscape of putting data centers in space is ridiculous," Altman said in a recent interview with Indian Express . "It will make sense someday." He pointed to launch costs and how difficult it would be to fix a broken GPU in space. "We are not there yet. There will come a time. Orbital data centers are not something that's going to matter at scale this decade." When announcing the SpaceX ( SPACE )-xAI ( X.AI ) merger earlier this month, Musk said global electricity demand for AI can't be met with terrestrial solutions without imposing hardship on the environment. "In the long term, space-based AI is obviously the only way to scale," he said. "My estimate is that within 2 to 3 years, the lowest cost way to generate AI compute will be in space." Other tech leaders also have their eye on space data centers. Alphabet ( GOOG ) ( GOOGL ) CEO Sundar Pichai said the company plans to launch two prototype satellites to test its hardware for such data centers in 2027. Amazon's ( AMZN ) Jeff Bezos previously forecast that space data centers will likely be built within the next 10-20 years, while Amazon Web Services CEO Matt Garman said the endeavor is "just not economical" currently. More on OpenAI, SpaceX Wall Street Lunch: ChatGPT Tops 800M Weekly Active Users Microsoft: An OpenAI Problem (Rating Upgrade) SpaceX-xAI Deal: Building America's New Icon OpenAI adjusts spending expectations: CNBC OpenAI: 18-to-24-year-olds account for 50% of ChatGPT use in India